Stringed musical instrument with removable neck

ABSTRACT

A stringed musical instrument such as a bass or bass viol can be constructed so that the neck and strings may be detached from the body of the instrument so as to facilitate movement or transportation of the instrument from one location to another. Preferably, the neck includes a male type plug which fits within a female type socket in the body of the instrument so as to hold the neck in place. Fastener means may be employed to secure the plug relative to the body of the instrument. The strings may be secured to the body of the neck by a hook type tailpiece so that they may be readily detached from the body of the instrument. A removable bridge which may contain a transducer is preferably used between the strings and the body of the instrument.

United States Patent [191 Dopera [111 3,831,485 [451 Aug, 27, 1974 [76] Inventor: Edgar E. Dopera, 1404 Gaylord,

Long Beach, Calif. 90813 [22] Filed: May 29, 1973 [21] Appl. No.: 365,023

Primary Examiner-Lawrence R. Franklin Attorney, Agent, or FirmEdward D. OBrian 57 ABSTRACT A stringed musical instrument such as a bass or bass viol can be constructed so that the neck and strings may be detached from the body of the instrument so as to facilitate movement or transportation of the instrument from one location to another. Preferably, the neck includes a male type plug which fits within a female type socket in the body of the instrument so as to hold the neck in place. Fastener means may be employed to secure the plug relative to the body of the instrument. The strings may be secured to the body of the neck by a hook type tailpiece so that they may be readily detached from the body of the instrument. A removable bridge which may contain a transducer is preferably used between the strings and the body of the instrument.

3 Clains, 4 Drawing Figures STRINGED MUSICALINSTRUMENT WITH REMOVABLE NECK BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Certain typesof stringed musical instruments are very desirable because of the musical soundsor tones which can beobtainedfromthem but are also comparatively undesirable because of problems encountered in transporting or moving them from one locationito another. Perhaps a prime example of this is a musical instrument commonly referred'to as a bass. Technically such an instrument should be'termed a bass viol, since it is the largestmember-of the viola da gamba family of musical instruments. 1

The nature of the musical sounds and tones produced by this type of instrument arefrequently considered to make it a necessity in many types of orchestras and small groups of instrumentalists. Because of thessize of this .type of instrument these basses cannot be readily transported or moved from one location to another as needed. Frequently various means'of public transporta-- tion refuse to carry instruments of this type because of their ungainly, bulky size. These size considerations make cases for these instruments comparativelyexpensive.

Because of these considerations there is a need for new and improved stringed musical instruments which may be readily taken apart sothat they can be easily transported. This can be readily illustrated with reference to a bass as indicated in the preceding. There is a need for a new method of constructing such basses so that they can conveniently be taken apart and/or knocked down into relatively'small components which can be easily transported and/or carried and which can be easily fitted into cases of a comparatively rational size.- There is also a need for instruments as' indicated which can be easily and conveniently re-assembled to an operative configuration after they have been transported. This need is particularly important in minimizing what may be referred to as the set-up time required by a musician-.ingetting ready to play.

It is not to be assumed from the preceding that these needs are unique to so-called basses or bass viols. There are quite a number of different musical instruments which when fully assembled utilize a body and a neck attached tothe body so that the combination of the two occupies a comparatively. large amount of space. There is need for improvement relative to all of these instruments so as to facilitate their utilization by facilitating their transportation or movement from one locale to another.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION:

A broad object of thepresent invention is to provide new and improved musical instruments. More specifically the invention is directed to providing new and improved musical instruments which satisfyv the needs noted in the preceding for instruments which can conveniently be knocked down or disassembled for movement and which can be easily reassembled when it is desired to utilize them. A further objective. of the present invention is to provide instruments as indicated which may be constructed at a comparatively nominal cost and which perform satisfactorily from a musical standpoint.

In accordance with this invention a stringed musical instrumenthaving an instrument body, a-neck extending from one of the ends of said body, at least one string extending from the end'of'thesneck remote from. the body and across the body to the end of the body remote from the neck and a bridge extending between the string(s) used so as to space the string(s) relative to the neck and the body is constructed so as to incorporate the improvement which compriseszmating interfitting means formed on the neck and the body for holding the neck relative to the'body in an operative positionand fastener means for securing these interfitting means together, these interfitting means and these fasten er means constituting the sole interconnection between the neck and body.

Stringed musical instruments in accordance with this invent [on also preferably include a number of other features making such instruments desirable from a utilitarian standpoint. Thus, such an instrument also preferably includes a hook-shaped tailpiece on the end(s) of the string(s) used which engages an appropriately formed grooved port on the bodyof the instrument.

Preferably a removable bridge incorporating or includ- BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING:

The invention is best more fullyexplained with'reference to the accompanying drawing in which:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a presentlypreferred embodiment or form of a musical. instrument-more specifically, a bass in accordance with this invention;

FIG. 2 is a partial side-elevational view of this instru ment;

FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view taken atline 3-3 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 4 is a partial cross-sectional'view 44 of FIG. 1.

From a careful consideration of this specification and the accompanying claims it will be realized that the invention embodies certain intangible concepts as set forth and defined in the claims which are applicable not only to various different types of basses but to a variety of other instruments. These concepts can be easily utilized in a wide variety of differently appearing and differently constructed instruments through the use or exercise of routine skill in the field of stringed musical intaken at line struments. For these reasons the accompanying drawing isnot to be taken as limiting the invention in any respect.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OFv THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT:

In the drawingthere is shown abass or bass viol 10 in accordance with this invention which includes a body 12 and a neck 14. This body 12 ispreferably formed of standard material such as wood of a conventional or desired configuration so asto be acceptable as a conventional instrument. As it is formed, it inshape so that it fits closely within the socket 18 in such a manner that there can be substantially no playf type movement between the neck 14 and the body 12 when the plug 20 is in place.

Because, however, it is impossible to make the plug 20 so that it can be moved in and out of the socket 18 without there being any possibility of some such play type relative movement between the neck 14 and the body 12, it is preferred to secure the plug 20 to the body 12 through the use of conventional threaded, bolt or screw type fasteners 24 as shown in FIG. 3 of the drawing. These fasteners 24 extend through the bottom 26 of the body 12 into engagement with internally threaded bushings 28 located in the plug 20 against movement in direct contact with the bottom 26. Two of the fasteners 24 are preferably employed with this structure to alleviate any possiblity of relative movement between the neck 14 and the body 12.

These fasteners 24 serve in connection with the socket l8 and the plug 20 as the sole means of interconnecting the neck 14 and the body 12 in the bass 10. lf desired the socket 18 and the plug 20 may be referred to as interfitting means connecting these parts because of the way they are constructed. The fasteners 24 may be referred to as fastening means or securing means because of their function.

When the fasteners 24 are removed through the use of a conventioanl wrench or the like, the neck 14 may be moved so as to disengage the plug 20 from the socket l8. Depending upon the precise geometry em ployed in an instrument such as the bass viol it may be necessary or desirable to loosen the strings 30 on the instrument 10 prior to removing the neck 14. The strings 30 may be easily loosened by loosening conventional pegs 32 on the neck 14 which are used to attach these strings 30 to this neck 14. After such removal of the neck 14' the strings 30 can be conveniently folded as the neck 14 is moved to a transportation position along the top 34 of the body 12.

In order to facilitate storage and transportation it is preferred, however, to construct the bass 10 so that the ends of the strings 30 can be completely removed from this bass when the neck 14 is detached from the body 12. This may be easily accomplished by connecting the ends of the strings 30 remote from the neck 14 to a hook-like tailpiece 36 which engages a groove 38 on a part 40 mounted on the top 34 of the body 12 remote from the neck 14 and in alignment with this neck 14. It is believed that it will be readily apparent how the tailpiece 36 may be readily detached from the part 40 when the tension on the strings 30 is lessened. Normally the tension on these strings 30 will hold the tailpiece 36 in place as the bass 10 is used.

The bass 10 utilizes a bridge 42 which is located transverse to the strings 30 between these strings 30 and the top 34 of the body 22 for the purpose of supporting the strings 30 so that they extend in a conventional manner along the top surface 44 of the neck 14 and across the body 12. With the bass 10 this bridge 42 is set upon a portion 46 of the top 34 which is shaped to receive it so that it will be held in place by the tension exerted by the strings 30. Preferably the bridge 42 with the construction shown includes a small transducer 48 designed to pick up vibrations from the strings 30 so that they may be amplified. With this construction the bridge 42 may be readily removed from an extended position on the body 12 when the neck 14 is removed from this body 12 so that there is substantially no danger of it being damaged as the body 12 is handled and moved. In reassembling the bass 10 the bridge 42 is merely set back in place in an operative position on the portion 46.

It is believed that the utility of the construction of the bass 10 will be apparent from the aforegoing discussion. With this bass 10 it is considered that the plug 20 is secured against the bottom 26 in a flat manner so that there will be an adequate transmission of vibrations between these two parts. The provision of being able to detach the neck 14 is considered to make it possible to avoid certain problems which are encountered with conventional instruments pertaining to or growing out of the tendency of instruments necks to warp when held for prolonged periods under the tension exerted by instrument strings. With the present construction the neck 14 will normally-be detached from the body 12 whenthe bass 10 is stored. As a consequence of this, the neck 14 will not be held under the tension which might cause it to warp for a prolonged period.

1 claim:

1. A bass viol having an instrument body, a neck extending from one of the ends of said body, string means extending from the end of the neck remote from said body along said neck and across said body to the end of said body remote from said neck and a bridge extending between said string means and said body so as to space said string means relative to said neck and said body in which the improvement comprises:

mating interfitting means formed on said neck of said body for holding said neck relative to said body so that said neck extends from said one of said ends of said body,

said interfitting means comprising a non-round socket formed within said body and a male plug on said neck fitting within said socket, said plug fitting closely within said socket so there is no movement between said plug and saidsocket,

at least one threaded bushing mounted within said plug and extending therethrough and being exposed to the exterior of said plug, each of said bushings having a flanged head engaging the upper surface of said plug,

said fastener means comprising at least one threaded fastener extending through the bottom of said body and engaging said bushing so as to hold said plug tightly against said body so that there is no movement between said neck and said body,

said interfitting means and said fastener means constituting the sole interconnection between said neck and said body.

2. A bass viol as claimed in claim 1 including:

a tailpiece secured to the end of said string means located at said end of said body remote from said neck and a part located on said body in engagement with said tailpiece, and i said tailpiece and said part being formed so as to include a hook and a groove connection between said part and said tailpiece which served to hold said string means in place when said string means are in tension.

3. A bass viol as claimed in claim 1 wherein:

there are two of said bushings and two of said fasten- CI'S. 

1. A bass viol having an instrument body, a neck extending from one of the ends of said body, string means extending from the end of the neck remote from said body along said neck and across said body to the end of said body remote from said neck and a bridge extending between said string means and said body so as to space said string means relative to said neck and said body in which the improvement comprises: mating interfitting means formed on said neck of said body for holding said neck relative to said body so that said neck extends from said one of said ends of said body, said interfitting means comprising a non-round socket formed within said body and a male plug on said neck fitting within said socket, said plug fitting closely within said socket so there is no movement between said plug and said socket, at least one threaded bushing mounted within said plug and extending therethrough and being exposed to the exterior of said plug, each of said bushings having a flanged head engaging the upper surface of said plug, said fastener means comprising at least one threaded fastener extending through the bottom of said body and engaging said bushing so as to hold said plug tightly against said body so that there is no movement between said neck and said body, said interfitting means and said fastener means constituting the sole interconnection between said neck and said body.
 2. A bass viol as claimed in claim 1 including: a tailpiece secured to the end of said string means located at said end of said body remote from said neck and a part located on said body in engagement with said tailpiece, and said tailpiece and said part being formed so as to include a hook and a groove connection between said part and said tailpiece which served to hold said string means in place when said string means are in tension.
 3. A bass viol as claimed in claim 1 wherein: there are two of said bushings and two of said fasteners. 